Smell has a hefty amount of molasses, dark fruit and alcohol. There is a hint of hops coming through as well. Taste is black licorice and molasses up front, some hop bitterness and dark fruits in the back end; light notes of dark chocolate. Not much espresso as stated on the label. Not bad.

Mouth feel is a little bit lacking, very light bodied. I think this would do good with a bit of aging, the molasses and black licorice taste were a little overwhelming to me and could use little subduing.

Very dark with small head. The aroma hints of hops, but the taste is dark and malty. Great feel in the mouth, complex changing aftertaste and lovely warming to more malt rather than hop. Solid stout, should be rated higher in my estimation. (240 characters)

Pours opaque black with a finger of brown head, settles to a ring of lace,

Fairly faint aroma, a bit of molasses and malt

Flavor has a nice hit of molasses and anise, some roasty malt, dark fruit (prune?) and surprising amount of hoppiness lingering on the tongue (OK, bottle says 52 IBUs, so that shouldn't be a surprise). A bit boozy, and some grassy flavor as it warms..

Mouthfeel is significant, but seems lighter than some in the style

Pretty rare I give an overall rating better than the component ratings, but there ya go... this beer makes a better impression on me than the sum of its parts. A refreshingly different take on one of my fave styles, which reminds me more of some of my own forays brewing the style than any commercial examples. I'd love to try a barrel aged version of this! (832 characters)

I have passed this one up so many times I thought what the hell and bought it.Pours black as my kids moms soul.I dont smell much...maybe some plum and cocoa.First sip is a bit boozy but gives way to the cocoa and othe signiture stout flavors.It seems to have that pop rocks dissolve on the tongue effect that I tend to like.For 7 bucks it aint bad and I would definatly revisit this one if I could not find a Ten Fidy or a Stone in stock...not bad at all. (455 characters)

Pours the darkest brown hue with a creamy two finger head and lacing everywhere,the smell is molasses,plums and dark mocha,the mouthfeel is full bodied with moderate carbonation and has tastes of dark coffee,chocolate,molasses and finished bittersweetness and overall it's quite nice without being over the top cheers. (318 characters)

Pours an opaque black with a foamy dark khaki head that settles to wisps of film on top of the beer. Small dots of lace form around the glass on the drink down. Smell is of dark roasted malt, cocoa, and char aromas. Taste is much the same with sweet cocoa, char, and dark fruit flavors on the finish. There is a mild amount of roast bitterness on the palate with each sip. This beer has a lower level of carbonation with a slightly crisp mouthfeel. Overall, this is a pretty good beer with a great smell and tasty flavors that make this one easy to drink. (555 characters)

O: I enjoyed this beer a lot. Eel river is a brewery I've only recently learned about and everything they do seems to be really good. I love black licorice, so that is part of it. I want to go get another! (517 characters)

Taste: Slightly sour twang of a stout is on target, lots of roasted barley supported by a sugary malt base that ends up somewhere near balanced. A light rain water taste that I associate with Organic beers, but it melds nicely with what is going on.

A- More like an Imperial PorterS- Dark fruits, raisins, maybe a little chocolate.T-Raisins, dark fruits,M- Full bodied and smooth, must have been oats.O- A good quality beer and certainly drinkable, but I've had better RISs. I'd go with okay on this one. (258 characters)

Appearance: Pours a dark rich brown that looks close to black in the glass. Head is dark tan and creamy. Drops to a small bubbly cap and collar. Moderate carbonation on the pour. Some hints of deep red at the edges when held to direct light.

Smell: Cocoa and a ton of dark fruit. Cherry, fig, plum, and dark berry. Some dark chocolate with a solid punch of roasted malt. Vague hint of herbal and citrus hopping, but it's big and malty. Sharp snap of licorice. Slightly oxidized with some backing alcohol. Relatively standard if a bit big on the dark fruit.

Taste: Mildly roasted with a hint of cocoa. Some dark chocolate buried in there as well. A hint of citrus and herbal hop notes. Pushes dark cherry and various dark berries along with fig and plum. Deeply fruity. A touch of licorice. Oxidation pushes sherry and some phenols. A touch of alcohol heat on the back. Some burnt my edges with a caramelized sweetness. A ton of raisin, a ton.

The aroma is a sweet, melanoidin-rich malt bomb. With the eyes closed, I wouldn't guess this was a stout on the aroma alone, due to a lack of roastiness.

The flavor follows the nose appropriately; rich and malty. I have held onto this bottle for about a year, and it has picked up the PERFECT amount of oxidation... which really just adds a soft complexity to the flavor. Any older, and I think we'd be looking at 'wet cardboard'.

The mouthfeel is full and somewhat oily, with just the smallest tickle from some soft carbonation. Some heat comes into play from the ethanol. No astringency whatsoever.

This beer certainly benefits from some limited ageing. I would certainly seek it out again. (767 characters)

Pours a black rich body with a bubbly tan head that did not last long. Lacing is nice. Rich dark malts roasted coffee and chocolate aromas. Roasty taste of coffee and malt. Mouthfeel is good, with nice carbonation.Overall a good RIS that isn't over the top. (261 characters)

Poured into a large snifter glass. The beer pours black with a thick tan head that retreats slowly. There are lots of visible bubbles along the side of the glass. There are aromas of dark roasted malt, chocolate, coffee, and some alcohol sweetness. Overall, it's a standard aroma profile for an imperial stout. The chocolate and roasted malt flavors are forward with a touch of alcohol. There's just a touch of coffee in the taste, but there's not much of a big roastiness there. The body is full with moderate to strong carbonation. This helps the beer finish a little dryer and makes it easier to drink, which is dangerous for a drink where some of the alcohol can be tasted. This is a very good beer. (703 characters)

a nice black pour with two fingers of tan head, patchy lacing. smells of licorice, toasted grains, chocolate. the flavor is very roasty and bitter.. lots of licorice, toasted grains, dark cacao. medium body on the heavy side with modest amount of carbonation for the style. there is a smell of alcohol, but you don't taste or feel it for the most part. a nice imperial stout, nothing out of the ordinary, but very nice to sit down and relax with a bomber. (455 characters)

A: Pretty recognizable as an imperial stout. High clarity given the color. I can't see light through it, so that's a good sign. Black. The meniscus is cocoa brown. No head, save for a slightly tan ring.

S: Malts of course. Faintly sweet smelling with some alcohol present.

T: Molasses, chocolate malt, toasted grains, some bittering hops that are *just* there enough to balance some of the sweetness. Cocoa, prunes, and raisins. Fades quickly from my palate. ABV shows through a little too much for the lighter flavors.

M: Drier than expected. Thinner body than some others I've had, and with more carbonation. Still round and creamy however.

O: Probably shouldn't be drinking 22 ounces of this, but it's pretty good! Probably will pass this over in the future for better RIS's though. (789 characters)

Grabbed a bottle tonight. I have been looking at this one for some time. I have no idea how old it is but at the near by beer cave these puppies have been sitting on a bottom shelf for over a year. Which is nice due to the 9.5% this should age well. Pouring out of the bottle the liquid is a dark brown and as it settles into the glass it becomes black as night with barely a hint of light causing a brownish ring around the top once the khaki thin head, about half a finger deep (I did not tip my glass) after a straight pour into the glass. The smell was expected. A deep roastyness mixed with what seemed to be almost like a sweet dark fruit mixed with dark chocolate. Very nice. At first sip it was stout bitterness mixed with the roasted malt and that dark bitter cooking chocolate like taste. Excellent. It appears to be very smooth. No alcohol whats so ever in the taste. This has aged well and its obvious that this is not fresh but in a good way. What a steal I got here. The mouthfeel is full bodied. Its thick yet dry to the finish. This has to be one of my top 10 stouts of all time from America. I was quite impressed with this and overall I have to say this is one I will buy again. Its really good and for my options in the Portland, Oregon beer scene that says a lot. (1,283 characters)

Mouthfeel has decent amount of carbonation without being over the top for the style.

Overall, I am really enjoying this one and could see revisiting it if found locally. I picked this up at a Whole Foods in Sebastopol California while on vacation. Plus it is certified organic - cool and giving consideration for this bonus feature in my overall rating. In the Imperial Stout category, Old Rasputin is still king of the hill for me but in absence of finding that, I wouldn't hesitate to spend time with this brew. (899 characters)